When the Sony A9 was announced, it seemed the ideal alternative to the Canon 1DX Mark II or Nikon D5. The ultimate sports or wildlife shooter. But the biggest complaint was Sony’s lack of long glass to go with it. Now, We’ve known Sony has been working on a 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens, but it’s been a long wait for it to see reality. Rumoured back in May 2017, it got a lot of Sony shooters excited. It also got a lot of Nikon and Canon shooters who’d been considering a switch excited, too. Then, it was reported to be out in the wild during this year’s Olympics. An announcement has taken much longer than anybody expected, but it’s finally here.
It’s an impressive looking lens, and manages to shave 2 full pounds (almost 1kg) off the weight of the Nikon 400mm f/2.8E and Canon 400mm f/2.8L.
Image Circle: 35mm (Full-frame E-Mount)Type: Telephoto PrimeFocal Length: 400mmAPS Equivalent: 600mmMax Aperture: f/2.8Min Aperture: f/22Diaphragm Blades: 11 (circular)Lens Construction: 23 elements in 17 groups, including 1 ED and 3 Fluorite elements; Fluorine coatingMinimum focus distance: 2.7m / 8.9 ftFilters: 40.5mm drop-in typeDimensions: 359 x 158.1mm (14.13 x 6.22″)Weight: 2895g (6.38 lbs)
Despite weighing around three quarters that of the competition, it’s the most expensive, coming in at $11,998. But that extra cost may be worth paying for to get the overall weight saving of the Sony system, especially over long sports games or wildlife sessions. Ted Forbes at The Art of Photography took one out to photograph football (I’m English, it’s football) recently. Here’s how his experience went.
If you want one for yourself then, as mentioned, they’re $11,998. They go on pre-order in a couple of days, but they won’t be shipping until September. So, you still have a little wait before you can get your own.
